


Evans, No Relation

by LueurdeLaube



Category: Soul Eater
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst and Humor, F/M, Mother-Daughter Relationship, Romance, Step-siblings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-22
Updated: 2013-04-13
Packaged: 2017-11-26 12:42:09
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/650631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LueurdeLaube/pseuds/LueurdeLaube
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They had not signed up for this. If they had known that her mother and his father wanted to get married, Soul and Maka wouldn't have kept their own relationship a secret. Now they were stuck in the same house, their parents having no clue about them. As step-siblings. Just Great.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Problems

**Chapter** **One -** **Problems**

"So it's pretty much a given now."

She remained silent and he dared to look at her only for a brief moment, her eyes downcast, her legs crossed by the ankles, feet dangling over the pier, the soft breeze ruffling her hair and clothes slightly. He sighed heavily, the thick lump in his throat making breathing painful.

"You know..." Soul trailed off, running a shaky hand through his hair, his eyes vacantly staring ahead at the sunset. "We could just tell them about us."

Her head snapped up, her eyes blazing, and he was sort of glad for that. She had been eerily silent and stoic for the last twenty minutes or so. He had expected her voice to come out shrill and angry, something that would match the glare she was giving him, but when she parted her lips to speak, her voice was soft, defeated.

"Tell our parents to call their engagement off because their respective teenage kids happened to have started dating before they decided to get hitched?" She snorted loudly, contempt spilling from her in waves. "I can't do that to my mom; because since she divorced from my dad I have never seen her this happy. She's actually happy with your dad, Soul. I can't do this to her. We're going to be step-siblings, Soul, we might as well come to terms with it."

He wanted to retort, let sarcasm and his irritation weave into every word, but in the end nothing came out of his mouth. As much as he loathed to admit it, Maka had a pretty good point. His dad was happy with her mom and ruining that by admitting that he had the hots for his future stepsister was not something he had in himself. Sure he was, when it came down to it, the "rebel-son", at least compared to Wes, but even he couldn't do this.

"So it's over now?"

She tensed up, her breath hissing sharply in between clenched teeth. He knew her answer, and asking her was moot and he understood her perfectly and deep down he knew it was the right thing to end their shaky relationship right now.

"What do you think? We have to."

It hurt more than he would like to admit. He didn't like feeling this way, so vulnerable and crushed. He took a shaky breath, squeezing his eyes shut, bowing his head dejectedly. "Okay then."

There was nothing more to say, so he silently stood up, fearing that if he remained at her side any longer, he might burst into tears or something that was as uncool. He smoothed his hands over his pants, dusting the dirt off that had accumulated as they sat. Without looking back, he said, "I guess we'll be seeing each other more often from now, huh?" He stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jeans, his fists clenched tightly, nails digging into his palms forcefully. "See you."

"Soul, wait!"

And he did. He made the mistake of turning around and seeing her teary eyes. He groaned. He definitely couldn't handle her tears, but what did she expect him to do? To hold and comfort her as he had done so a few years back when the divorce of her parents had been eventually finalized? It would kill him. It was going to be hell to see her every day and pretend that everything between them hadn't happened, robbing all of its importance and significance to him.

"What do you want?"

He didn't mean to sound so harsh and he regretted it the moment he saw her wincing. He shouldn't forget that this took as much of a toll on her as it did on him. Maybe things would have turned out differently if they hadn't kept their relationship a secret. There was no use in dwelling on that, though; it wasn't like they could change things.

She was shaking; he wasn't sure if it was from the slight chill in the evening air or from something else. "Maybe a last kiss?" He should refuse her, avoid making their "goodbye" more painful. That was what he told himself. Her eyes, her damn big, green, beautiful, teary eyes made it impossible to say "no".

He budged, gathering her in his arms and pouring everything into the kiss. Her hands fisted in his hair, making him groan and bite her lip. They were being careless, someone might see them. Maybe that was why he was prolonging the kiss, too. Maybe he wanted someone to see them, maybe he wanted it all to come out; he was selfish like that.

In the end, when they parted from their last hug and said their goodbyes again, they went their separate ways, dreading the day they wouldn't be able to escape each other because they would be living together and ignoring their history as a couple.

* * *

He had to admit that the days around the wedding were not that difficult to deal with since everyone was very stressed with the preparations and such. Of course, that didn't mean that his heart didn't feel like it shattered into a million pieces whenever he saw her, especially when they were forced to stay close together during the reception.

Maka was handling this much better than he was. She had an impeccable way of looking happy even if she wasn't─ at least any outsider would say she looked happy. He knew her well enough to read her like a book. Her smile was definitely strained, not reaching her dull and blank eyes. Whenever she smiled sincerely, her eyes would shine brightly and his heart would always skip a beat because he would be so enraptured by her radiant smile.

He grimaced. He sounded like a lovesick idiot. Well, if he liked it or not, he was a lovesick idiot. Next to him, his brother nudged him gently against his shoulder, a pleasant smile plastered on his face as always.

"What the hell, Wes?" Soul hissed, trying to jab him with his elbow back.

"Stop it. At least pretend to look like you're happy for dad."

"Huh?"

"You look like you want to kill someone."

Soul grumbled under his breath about stupid brothers and stupid weddings and stupid stepmothers, which only earned him a light smack on his shoulder and a disapproving scowl by his brother.

"Behave, little brother," he said, his scowl immediately transforming into a charming smile when another wave of guests passed them. "I know you don't like to play by the rules and I know it isn't easy to accept someone else than mom at dad's side so soon after the divorce." Soul looked up at the harsh timbre of Wes' voice, but chose not to comment on it, although it did make him feel a little bad. He had not been thinking about his mom because he had been toobusy wailing inwardly about his his lost girlfriend like the teenager he was. Never once had it occurred to him how others aside from him and Maka were taking his father's remarriage and maybe he should call his mom after this and try to be less selfish and─

"But at least try to be happy for dad, okay? And before you can protest, you are going to dance with our dear stepmother and stepsister."

His spine stiffened at this, but he nodded nevertheless. Making a scene was not cool, and he was going to try to not to think of himself and Maka but of the bigger picture. It wasn't like he couldn't date other girls and it wasn't like he didn't have girls pining after him and it wasn't like he couldn't─

One glance at Maka dancing clumsily with his dad made his thoughts crumple together like a flimsily built house of cards. Their eyes locked for a moment and the prospect of dating other people was no more. He hung his head, downed a glass of champagne ignoring the aghast eyes of some of his older relatives, and cursed at Wes when he nudged him with his elbow and told him not to drink like an alcoholic─not to mention he was not old enough to drink to begin with.

The evening dragged on to the point he felt like he was stuck in a time loop. In the end, he did what was expected of him. He danced with Maka only once because he couldn't handle her proximity right now, but she hadn't exactly protested, and made sure to avoid him for the majority of the festivities.

His stepmother was a nice person and unlike his mom, a lot more open with her emotions and compliments. It had made him happy that she had taken such a liking to his music, not many people did, and it had certainly helped that she genuinely looked like she enjoyed it. She certainly seemed to care a lot about the people around her and was not afraid to express it. At least that was how she appeared to him at first glance, but there had been instances in which he had felt like an inferior creature in her presence, a calculating glint in her eyes, sizing him up, judging without ever looking like she was. His mom was a very blunt person, never one for passive-aggressiveness, always telling what was on her mind in that cool, detached way of hers.

Soul couldn't help but think his stepmother was like a ticking time bomb or like a volcano, dormant for some time, only to startle and surprise everyone in the vicinity with a powerful eruption of lava, smoke and fire.

* * *

It was a matter of time really.

With Wes gone back to continue classes and their parents, no, not _their_ _parents_ , his father and her mother off to their honeymoon, leaving them alone in the large house, it was as if fate was really waiting for it to happen.

Maybe it had been stupid on his part to join her by the pool. She didn't make it any better in that skimpy bikini. Actually, her bikini wasn't skimpier than the usual bikinis, but he nevertheless couldn't take his eyes from her. It certainly didn't help to keep his libido down that it clearly showed she had been on a swim already, the red garment clinging to her tits in the most distracting way.

"Have you started to work on your presentation yet?"

Her voice startled him; he had expected their time together to pass in eternal silence. She slurped on the orange juice he had brought her when he had made some for himself.

"Nah, I still have time."

"You're such a lazy ass. You shouldn't procrastinate so much."

"Calm your tits, woman. I'll be done with it in time."

She snorted. "I bet you're going to start on it a day before it's due."

"You know me too well." He grinned lazily, fixing her with a mocking look.

She glanced away from him with an annoyed huff of breath, and he was delighted to see the pink that was dusting her cheeks. He shook his head. Bad Soul! He still couldn't help it. Even though he had loved to tease her about her small boobs, Maka had a hot body. Those sinfully long legs that always made his blood boil, her flat stomach, her strong arms, her tiny waist, the curve of her hips, her elegant neck which he had loved to nip or bite playfully.

Fuck! If he kept doing this, he was going to end up with a boner. He groaned, letting his head hang tiredly. Maybe he should just go inside and avoid her entirely during the 14 days they were going to have the house for themselves. Maybe he should go for a swim before he went inside; the cold water would do him some good and help to keep his head clear from any dirty thoughts involving him and Maka together.

The shock of cold water engulfing him definitely made any unwanted boners impossible. He emerged with a gasp and pushed his wet hair that was plastered on his forehead and eyes back. His eyes immediately focused on Maka again, only to find her staring at him intently, her bright green eyes peeking above the edge of the book she was reading.

He couldn't help the smirk spreading over his face as he dove under water, closing his eyes for a moment before he opened them, the chlorine burning and stinging. He swam a few laps before he grew tired of it, boners being the last thing on his mind.

But then there was a splash and fuck, Maka was with him in the water, her book forgotten on the chaise she had been occupying before.

"You up for a race?" She grinned cheekily.

He should say no, he knew something was going to happen if they were this close to each other and not wearing enough clothes. He definitely should say no.

"Bring it on."

* * *

He was a dumbass. The best thing would be to retreat immediately, increase the distance between their bodies, leave the pool and never get near her again before his dad and his stepmother returned from their honeymoon. As much as he tried to talk himself into it, his body didn't move, stayed floating in the water as he gazed down at her. Their race had lasted longer than he had expected and they had only stopped because they had ended up arguing if it was a tie or not, only to realize too late how close they had been standing to each other.

He could feel the warmth of her body, was mesmerized by the rise and fall of her chest, of how her breasts pushed against the wet and clingy fabric of her bikini with each intake of breath. She was beautiful and fuck it, how could he ever hope to delude himself that he'd be able to keep his hands off her?

He wanted her, he wanted her so much and he hated his dad for marrying her mom, hated how they were broken off by something that was not under their influence, hated _his_ mom for going through with the divorce, hated _her_ dad for being a cheating bastard.

He gulped, jumbled desperation running in his veins, his throat tight with a searing ache. He raised his hand, ran it down her bare arm, licked his lips at the goose bumps that followed the path of his fingers. Her breath hitched, her eyes were wide and beautiful and so green. She was so beautiful, so fucking beautiful he couldn't take it.

"Soul?"

He couldn't speak, couldn't talk, words were beyond him and he could only aim this pathetic, stricken look at her, tighten his hold on her elbow.

"Soul, we shouldn't..."

"I don't care." And she didn't care either because she had thought of it too, of him, of them, together, not giving a fucking care about the marriage of their parents.

"Two weeks," he said, pressing himself against her, shuddering not because of the cold water. "They're gone for two weeks. Nobody will be in the house but us."

He kept his hands to himself like the gentleman he was, let her mull this over, waited for her decision like the obedient little lapdog he was. For a moment he believed she was going to push him away, her eyes clouded with confliction; even if she were to push him away, he'd take it like a man and leave her be because as much as he wanted her, craved her touch, her presence, her voice, her _everything_ , he'd cherish her happiness over everything else. If she didn't want him for whatever reason, he'd respect that even when his heart would be torn to shreds in the process.

But then she nodded and he thought his heart might have melted out of his chest cavity. His breath caught in his throat as she unfastened the strings of her bikini top, threw it away and looked at him with glazed eyes, a look so familiar that it made him recall their most intimate of moments in vivid detail.

"Two weeks," she said, voice quiet as she pushed herself against his chest, nuzzling his nose, their lips barely apart. "Two weeks and then..."

* * *

They had done this before, twice or more depending on the technicalities. They might have not been officially a couple when they had fooled around, kissed and made out, gotten to third base. It had been a little awkward perhaps, but they had known each other long enough not to let such a small thing as oral sex throw their dynamic in disarray. They hadn't been that insistent to put a label in their relationship until some months later, and it had taken them another month to properly consummate their relationship.

It hadn't been as awkward as he had imagined it to be, maybe all the heavy petting and skipping from base to base had helped them in that regard. They had done it in his house, in the living room on the soft rug close to the fireplace, when his parents were away for the weekend in Dublin for a charity concert and she had told her crazy dad she'd be staying over at Tsubaki's.

He hadn't been consciously aware that he'd had probably ticked off every romantic movie cliché in his mental list in preparation for their evening together. The living room had many decorative candles and he had not shied away from using them, hadn't thought about how uncool it was and had only stopped short of surprising her with rose petals. He had wanted it to be perfect, wanted to show how much he loved her, how serious he was about them that he had not given a damn that this might not be what cool guys did. No, such romantic gestures were for the ones who never failed to compliment their girlfriends, bought her a rose for every date, commented on her beautiful eyes and lame stuff like that.

But Soul hadn't cared because it had been so worth it and not because of the sex, but because it had been so worth to see her face light up in happiness, to see her radiant smile and to hear her laugh and tease him for being 'uncool'. He had ended up playing the piano for her even; he had played the song he had written for her, had been inspired by her.

Yeah, he had really done everything every romance cliché entailed.

Their first time had been slow, gentle and passionate, and he had made sure she felt good.

This time there was no slow or gentle, but there sure was a hell of a lot of passion. He hadn't bothered to take his swimming trunks off, only pushed them down to his knees, doing the same with her bikini bottoms. He thrust into her from behind, clutching her hips close to him as she barely held on the edges of the chaise, moaning his name loudly, shouting and yelling and begging and fuck, he'd give her what she wanted.

His pace was quick and unrelenting, and it made his ego soar with how fast she climaxed. He was still hard and turned her around to appreciate her dazed face, the flush on her skin, the need in her eyes, only to enter her again. Her legs wound around his hips tightly, making him groan lowly, his muscles clench and it was harder to move, but he didn't really have to as Maka did all the moving. The sinewy grinding of her hips brought his arousal to whole new level, and when she let her hand slither down her body to rub her clit, he felt his brain going numb for a moment until he decided that this wasn't fair, and while he let her touch herself because it was amazingly hot, he made sure he was the one grinding into her.

He let out a sharp breath through clenched teeth, buried his face against her neck, licked off the sweat there, bit into her skin and smiled when she trembled. He asked her if she felt good, and she could only whimper her consent in response as her nails dug into his shoulder blades as her second orgasm tore through her over-sensitized body and made her mash her forehead against his shoulder. There was no way he could last any longer, not with how she whispered teasingly against his ear to _let_ _go_ and damn─

He collapsed on top of her with a raspy cry, barely catching himself on his elbows so as not to squash her small body. His blood burned for her, his heart racing still as they embraced each other. He kissed her forehead, her nose, her cheek, her lips; whispered that he loved her and other sappy things he really meant. She giggled when he refused to move when she told him he was heavy and just shoved him aside, flipping their position so she was lying on top of him.

They remained like this for some time, and for a moment he could forget that this togetherness was a short-lived happiness. Maka raised her head looked at him imploringly before she sighed sadly. "Two weeks, Soul. Two weeks and then we're going to..."

Like before she let the sentence trail off with no intention to finish it. He just nodded, kissed her temple and hugged her close. Even if it were only two weeks he could enjoy with her before being brought back to the reality in which they were considered brother and sister by law, he sure as hell was not going to waste that time by moping around.

* * *

The light in Soul's room was dim, the slight glow of his night lamp accentuating the curve of Maka's hip as she lazily drew circles on his chest.

"They're coming back tomorrow," she mumbled and his arm around her waist tightened. Her heart clenched at the gesture but she knew it would be for the best, and the fact she had, in a moment of weakness, allowed him to touch and kiss her might have been a mistake, but a mistake she couldn't bring herself to regret.

How could she have resisted him in nothing but a pair of shorts all wet, his strong chest bared to her eyes. She bit her lip, feeling her body heat up all over again, and released a shuddery sigh. Just this once she wanted to be selfish, wanted him all for herself and not care about the awkwardness that would ensue if her mother ever found out about them.

She curiously traced his left collarbone with her fingers, enjoying the way he gulped and his body quivered by such a small touch. She reveled in the way the shadows played on his chest, bringing out the shape of firm muscle. How was she supposed to live in the same house with him and go on with her life without touching him? It wasn't even about the sex; she wouldn't be able to hold his hand or have his arm around her or cuddle with him. It wasn't like what they were doing was really forbidden, they weren't related by blood, had never been raised together, had been together before her mother decided to marry his father, but she knew admitting that she was in a relationship with her step-brother would never go well with her mother or her stepfather. Her stepfather was a well-known pianist and he would never want his reputation to be shattered by them being together; he'd hate them for making people more interested in gossip about his rebellious son wooing his stepdaughter instead of his amazing music, hate them for losing the respect of fellow composers and his students.

Her mama...her mama would just be disappointed in her; she would tell her this, tell her she'd expected better of her own daughter and...

She sighed ruefully, closed her eyes when she felt him shift a little. He brought his hand up to cup her cheek, ran his long, beautiful fingers through her tousled her. She wasn't prepared for the small smile he gave her and she felt her heart constrict just some more, her lips faintly making the effort to kiss him back as his mouth slanted over hers.

"I love you," he said.

And she felt her weak resolution shatter.


	2. Support

It wasn't that difficult to keep the others in the dark about what he and Maka did behind closed doors. They just needed to blurt out some bullshit about having to do homework together and Maka insisting they were not to be disturbed by anyone since Soul was such a _lazy ass_. It was almost ideal, they saw each other every day, could talk to each other in privacy more often than not and have the most amazing of sex behind closed doors. Yes, it was almost ideal.

"Soul, could you call your sister downstairs, dinner is almost ready."

"She's not my _sister_."

His father sighed, rubbed the bridge of his nose as he put the newspaper down. "Soul," he began, reprimanding tone and all, and Soul just rolled his eyes because he had heard this lecture a million times already, "I know it is not easy, but at least try to get along with your _sister_."

"Oh, we're getting along just fine─" he bit back a smirk because he and Maka were getting along more than fine "─I just don't need to call her my sister. Hell, Wes is already high-maintenance enough to occupy all my brotherly feelings of shit."

He was met with the exasperated expression of his father as he waved his hand dismissively. "Fine, just tell Maka that dinner is ready then."

Soul grinned. "Will do, sir."

His dad and stepmother really liked to rub the words 'brother' and 'sister' in. It never failed to make him flinch because what he had with Maka was nowhere near like what brothers and sister had, at least sane brothers and sisters, he thought with a grimace.

She was in her room, her nose deep in a book, and he smiled fondly as he shut the door behind them. Maka perked up, shooting him one of her absurdly adorable smiles that would have made him freeze on the spot with a big, goofy grin on his face if he wasn't already used to them.

"Dinner's ready," he said, taking the book out of her hands without warning as he leaned in to kiss her. He made sure to mark the page before he put the book down and kneeled on the bed to kiss her properly, these small pecks were never enough to sate him or her for that matter. She moaned into his mouth, pushed him back a little, her eyes dazed and disoriented.

"Soul, this is dangerous. Someone might come in and..."

He growled, letting his head drop to her shoulder. "Fuck them."

Her arms tightened around him, her breath soft and warm against his skin. "I know it's annoying." She sighed, petted his hair and he nearly purred, wondering faintly why it never felt this good when ran his own hand through his hair. "Maybe if I hadn't insisted that we keep our relationship a secret before, maybe then─"

"Hey," he looked up, raised her head by her chin to make her meet his gaze. "What's done is done. There's nothing we can do about it, so stop beating yourself up about it. Even if they had known, there's no way to be sure that they wouldn't have gotten hitched anyway. Who knows? They probably would have insisted we break up or something."

She let out an an agitated puff, lay down, taking him with her on top of her. "It's weird. I insisted that we keep it a secret and now I hate all the hiding. I'm a hypocrite."

"We could still go out on dates. We just need to make sure we're somewhere no one recognizes us," he mumbled against her hair. He felt her smile against his temple. She patted him on the head and if she did that just a little longer he'd fall asleep on top of her in a matter of seconds.

"Thanks, Soul."

After a brief moment of silence, Maka spoke up again, her voice muffled slightly. "You know, I've been thinking about...when we graduate and go to university, we could maybe..."

He perked up, hope bubbling up in his chest. "Go to the same university?"

She nodded hesitantly, running her hand down his back. "Yeah. I mean, we would be free to do whatever we want."

"And..." he took a deep breath, willing his fluttering heart to stay calm. "Do you think we should tell them then?"

She sighed tiredly. "I'm not sure but...we can't keep this to ourselves forever either. I just think...maybe they'd be more tolerant if we don't live in the same house anymore and I mean you're 18 already and I'll be too in a month and then..."

"We can do whatever we want."

"Yes, but we need to apply to the same universities and get accepted first and...and..."

He stroked her cheek before he pressed his lips against her forehead. "Sounds like a plan."

* * *

Wes was glad to return. He was tired as hell but it had been his choice to take one of the early morning flights. His dad and stepmother wouldn't be home as his dad had been invited to a concert in Chicago by of his college friends. It was hard to believe that nearly half a year had passed already since his father's remarriage. Well, that way he didn't have to spend 'quality time' with his family with senseless talking and forced bonding time and Soul and Maka were more bothered with their own shit than each other.

Wes would not have tempted fate that way if he had known he'd be eating his words just a few minutes later.

It started innocently enough with him struggling to get his key into the lock and trying not to drag his suitcase too much as the thing was already abused beyond recognition. Things became progressively weirder while he was thinking about making himself a cup of coffee when he was starting to hear the mishmash of piano keys. Wes knew that Soul did not like to play, maybe he wanted to use the absence of dad to play how he liked to play.

But even then, this didn't sound like Soul's playing at all, in fact, it sounded like a five-year old hitting the keys to their heart's desire. He was mildly curious, but mostly tired as he risked a look into the living room before he made his way up the stairs to sleep in his arm, fluffy bed for five years. That was the plan; he hadn't, however, been prepared for quite the peculiar sight. There was Soul sitting on the piano bench, and it wasn't a five year old hitting the keys with its fingers, but Soul's elbows. He wasn't even facing the piano...oh, and there was Maka...on top of him, her legs on either side of him, moving and grinding against him and they were making these weird lusty noises.

What were they doing?

_What were they doing?!_

He wrenched his eyes away from the _mentally scarring_ sight because he knew what they were doing, he knew what it looked like when a girl was riding a boy. Oh God! At least they were still mercifully clothed, and Maka's skirt had for once been long enough to cover something and he hadn't ended up seeing his little brother's penis and─he was going to puke, he...he had to erase this picture from his eyes and fuck it, he should not have turned that bottle of Absinthe down and maybe he could just rub his eyeballs clean with bleach, or better yet drink it and drop dead or something because he couldn't fucking deal with this and urgh.

His brother was screwing his stepsister!

He didn't know how he managed to find his room during what felt like a trip on acid gone bad. He plopped down on his bed and he realized he hadn't even bothered to bring the suitcase upstairs. He thought it would be appropriate to curl up in the fetal position and rock and forth like mental patient in the psychiatric ward like one from a particularly bad, inaccurate movie. Instead he managed to fall asleep some time later, woke up an hour later and got sick when he remembered why he felt like throwing up in the first place.

He couldn't deal with this, he wouldn't be drinking any coffee tonight, he needed booze for this and he reacted accordingly, taking out his secret bottle of whiskey, which he had expertly hidden from prying eyes. Yes, booze and lots and lots of episodes of his favourite soap opera─he mentally backpedaled on that thought because if he wanted to erase all traces from complicated, romantic not blood siblings relations he really shouldn't be watching stuff that was the breeding ground for complicated, romantic relations.

He settled on _My Little Pony_ instead.

* * *

It was two hours later when a thoroughly satisfied Soul, who had yet to realize that Wes was home, headed upstairs only to see his big brother in a state between _zombie_ and _junkie_ sitting on his bed and watching _My Little Pony._

Soul knocked on the door quietly and nearly flinched when Wes looked at him with bloodshot eyes.

"Hey when did you come back?"

"Ssssssoull."

Soul blinked, eyes drawn to the empty whiskey bottle. "Wes, are you drunk? Already?" voice flat, he rolled his eyes and took the bottle from his brother's loose grasp.

"'m not drunk."

Soul snorted. "I feel like I'm getting drunk by watching you _being_ drunk so don't tell me you're not."

"'s your fault anyway."

"How is it my fault that you decide to get piss drunk?"

He didn't reply and Soul chalked this up to Wes not quite knowing how to talk without his words ending up as a slurred mishmash of nonsense rather than him wanting to stay quiet. The muted voices from the TV made the silence not as awkward. Soul was surprised when Wes spoke again, sounding too sober for his current state of inebriation.

"Soul, you know...you can tell me anything, right?"

He raised an incredulous brow because what the hell was Wes saying? He sighed.

"Just go to sleep, Wes, and don't bitch at me when you have a headache later."

"I am going to have a headache with or without the booze."

"Then take pain meds or something."

"I saw you."

Soul perked up. "Huh? Wes, what─"

"I saw you!" Wes stood up, shaky on his feet but he still managing to speak clearly enough to make Soul's carefully constructed world of secrecy crumble into dust. "I saw you having sex with Maka!"

The bottle fell from his hand; no one paid it any heed as Wes clutched his shoulders tightly, shaking him a little. "Listen, Soul. I know you like to live dangerously and shit, but don't you think that screwing your step-sister is going too far even for you? Just...what's wrong with you? And stop it before dad catches wind of it."

Soul was momentarily too dumbstruck to form words let alone to formulate a proper reply. He gulped, dread gripping his heart in its chilling hand. Stop? Stop being with Maka? If he didn't would Wes blurt it out? He clenched his fists and said, "I won't."

Wes gave him a long stare, fingers digging painfully into his skin. "Soul," he slowly began. "I'm not telling you to stop having sex or anything. Sex is awesome; I would never dream of telling you to stop, but just do it with a girl that is not your step-sister."

Soul pushed him away, fingers twitching with the urge to break something. "You think this is just about sex? Fuck you, Wes, I'm not like you. I...I actually love Maka."

Wes snorted loudly, freezing him with a well-aimed gaze of brotherly disdain. "Oh please, how long have you known her. You're just what? 17? How would you know what love is? There are plenty of other girls you could be dating inst─"

"I've known her since middle school and...and we've been kinda together for two years!"

"Wait...this means...before, before dad married..."

Soul nodded, his voice strained when he answered, "Yes."

Another silence followed and the _My Little Pony_ episode might have ended, he wasn't sure. He just knew he was in deep shit and briefly considered in this frenzied state of mind to pick the empty whiskey bottle up and pummel Wes or himself or something.

"Are you going to tell dad?" he asked, carefully keeping his head down, his bangs shadowing his eyes.

"Fuck if I know."

Wes sat down on his bed, burying his face in his palms as he let out an agitated groan. "Okay, so you love Maka?"

He nodded.

"Just...just make sure you keep it down and stuff. And never ever make me walk in on you again, okay?"

* * *

"This really blows, you know," Liz said, sighing dejectedly, eyes heavily lidded as she laid her head down on her arms. "I'd always been rooting for you to get together and now this."

Maka perked up, her fingers curled against the hardcover of the novel her father had gotten her. There was something entirely wrong that she loved each and every book her father got her, whereas reading the books her mother got her seemed more like a chore than anything.

"You had...no, you have so much chemistry," Liz continued, not even bothering to look up as the waiter brought them their drinks. Maka thanked him and smiled up at him. "But you have to admit, living in the same house would make it easier for you to hook up..intimately." She smirked.

Maka gasped, pretended to be disgusted and shocked and spluttered about Soul being her stepbrother and how she wouldn't even dream of─

She stopped in the middle of her tirade of disgust. Maka was tired of pretending, tired of not getting along with Soul; she felt like she was suffocating by having to keep this secret from everyone else. She was stuck in limbo, not being able to do anything about it and she wanted...she needed to...to talk.

And the whole truth streamed out of her like the frickin Niagara Falls, she might be close to crying near the end, or already crying, she wasn't sure and liked to pretend she was completely dry-eyed as she braced herself for Liz's judgement.

Her friend blinked, took a little to take the news in and grinned. "I knew it, hah!" She pumped her fist in the air, startling a bored couple sitting at the table closest to them, and gave her a megawatt smile. "There's no way you can have that much unresolved sexual tension going on without snapping. So when did it happen?"

Maka was confused, kind of happy too, but mostly confused. "Um," she looked up, tried to decide if actual sexual intercourse was the 'snapping point' of the unresolved sexual tension, or that kiss they had shared when she got fed up with him and refused to tutor him anymore...or if that one time when she had given him a blowjob because she could and he had been more than receptive to her advances. "For...a long while. Before mama remarried and...yeah."

Liz's eyes grew wide, her lips parted in a loud gasp, before they curled into another grin. "Oh, I can't believe you," she laughed, throwing her head back. "You dirty little slut," she said, proud and teasing at once and even though Maka wasn't offended, she was still embarrassed beyond belief and really hoped the couple on the next table didn't find their conversation more interesting than each other, not that it appeared like it'd take a lot to accomplish that. "I always thought you to be the biggest prude ever and here you tell me you've been sexing your step-brother. Ohmigosh, I'm so proud of you."

"Liz! How can you, I mean why are you even...how...urgh."

"I'm guessing your mom has no idea," Liz continued as if nothing was amiss, as if they were having a perfectly normal conversation. "Does _anyone_ know?"

"We haven't told anyone...but Wes knows _becausehewalkedinonushavings ex_."

"Oh? You should have invited him over."

"Liz! I'm trying to be serious here."

"So am I! Come on, when I'm talking about threesomes with brothers, I couldn't be more serious." She cackled and Maka found herself wondering how they had ever become friends in the first place. "Okay, so Wes hasn't told anyone else either or else there would have been hell to pay."

"No, he hasn't." Maka blushed because there was nothing more off-putting than the knowledge that Wes had seen them going at it. She usually wasn't this careless and when Soul told her about it, she was close to breaking everything off with him in a fit of panicky hysterics.

"What do you want to do now," Liz asked, features schooled into seriousness. "Do you plan to keep this a secret forever?"

Maka sighed. "I...I don't know. I just know that mama wouldn't approve."

"Oh, please, you're almost 18, you can do whatever you want. I also don't see why she is in any position to tell how you're supposed to─"

"Liz, she's my mother. She has every right to tell me what to do and not to do."

Liz made a loud snort, scowling heavily. "She's just come back to tell you she's getting married to your boyfriend's dad after travelling through Europe even though she technically had custody over you and left you with your dad."

"Well, we did keep in touch─" at Liz's incredulous eyes, Maka heaved another sigh, "─well, okay. Maybe we didn't talk that much after a few months...but...she's still my mom."

She hung her head, unable to meet Liz's gaze anymore, as her hands clenched in the fabric of her skirt. She gulped, feeling a knot tightly lodged in her throat. She was very happy that her mama was back, but it wasn't the same as before, definitely not. As much as she hated to admit it, Maka couldn't break the sense of distance between her and her mother. The image of the woman she used to look up to, who had been her hero, had blurred and she came to realize how much she had been idealizing that woman, refusing to acknowledge her flaws.

Sometimes, she wished she could live with her dad again. She kind of missed him, but hell would freeze over before she told the oaf that. Maybe...if she moved in her with her dad again, her mother would be a little more receptive to the idea of her and Soul being a couple.

"Look," Liz said, making her perk up at the seriousness of her voice. "If you want to be with Soul, stay with him. I'm not going to judge and Tsubaki, Black*Star, Patti and Kid won't either. If something happens you can count on me, got it."

Maka smiled faintly, gratitude swelling in her heart. "Thank you, Liz."

* * *

With summer break came a time that was mercifully free of school, but with summer break also came the lack of excuse for Maka and him to lock themselves in one of their room's to fuck. Well, they had this assignment over summer break but other than that nothing much, and they made sure to cling to this excuse for as long as possible.

"You're a fucking tease, you know that?" He groaned lowly, watching her eyes glimmer as her lips curled into a mischievous smirk and her hand ran down his chest. She rolled her hips into his again, eliciting needy moans from both of them.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, _Soul_." She practically purred his name, flashing him a sultry smile as she set up a steady but slow - far too slow - pace with her hips. He let his hands roam up her body, revelled in the softness of her skin, stroked her back, her sides, her shoulders and palmed her breasts roughly, enjoying her soft sighs as she ground against his dick. He was tempted to look down, to see where they were joined, but that would mean not looking at her face that was so wonderfully expressing her pleasure. Ah, decisions, decisions. He wished all of his dilemmas were like this. He firmly placed his hands on her hips, guiding their movements languidly until she threw her head back. He was entranced by her hair, the way a few strands were plastered to her forehead, the messiness of it because he loved running his finger through it.

He wouldn't mind spending the rest of his life like this, with Maka in his bed and both of them naked. Gathering the last vestiges of his ability to think properly, he brought one hand between her legs and rubbed her clit with a thumb, panting at the sudden jerk of her hips. She mewled throatily, gasped out his name in that raspy, sensual way of hers that always made his limbs feel weak and left his brain nearly short-circuiting.

He whispered his love against her lips, kissed her chastely, his mouth slanting over hers gently as she became undone in his lap. His blood was roaring in his ears, his nerve endings on fire as she rode him to his orgasm.

Afterwards, they'd cuddle a little, share kisses and talk about random things until they'd need to get down to eat together with the whole family. They'd take their time to clean up.

Dinner today was filled with chatter by his stepmother and dad as it was usually the case. Wes had been far less talkative since their parents divorced and had been spending increasingly more time at their mother's house. Perhaps it was because he wanted to show their dad what he thought about this swift remarriage of his, or maybe it was just because it was easier to avoid him and Maka that way.

Soul would try to be discreet when he looked at Maka or at least that was what he kept telling himself.

"What is your biology assignment specifically about?" his father asked.

Soul sighed and caught Maka's gaze before he answered with a lazy smirk. "Anatomy."

Maka tried to cover up her reddening cheeks, gulping down her tall glass of water. Wes choked on his food and went for the wine instead.

His dad remained oblivious. "Oh, sounds interesting, I guess? I hope you're enjoying yourselves."

And Wes choked on his wine.


	3. Confrontation

She became suspicious when her daughter snapped at the 15 year old daughter of the cleaning lady. She faintly understood her daughter's ire; this was no place to flirt with Soul when your mother was supposed to be working, but Maka's reaction had been quite...volatile to say the least.

"Maka, darling," she said softly, putting a hand on her daughter's shoulder as she eyed her warily. "Calm down. No need to be so angry."

Maka's shoulders were shaking, her eyes blazing as she gritted her teeth forcefully. "The nerve of that bit─girl!"

She attempted to calm her daughter down, tried not to think too much about her outburst; she might just be having a bad day, it could be hormones, nothing more because sweet, innocent Maka would never ever do something to upset her mother and sweet, innocent Maka didn't act impulsively, she thought everything through, held herself back and reacted accordingly (nevermind that she had spent more time overseas in Russia, Germany, France, Bulgaria, Italy than in the States with her daughter to properly judge her character).

No, she really knew Maka. She trusted her daughter. Her daughter was wise and smart. Her daughter was her pride ─the only good thing that came out of her marriage with Spirit. She saw so much of herself in her and...and regardless, a seed of suspicion had been planted, and began to pay attention to Maka.

And she noticed everything, felt foolish for having overlooked all of this, all the subtle and not so subtle things in their interactions. It was all there ─the lingering glances, the shy smiles, the cocky grins, the suggestive raise of an eyebrow, the touches. Oh, how could she have ever not seen the touches like the hand that remained too long and too low on a back, the not-quite clap but more of a pat on the shoulder, the far too intimate cheek-pinching, the light-hearted punch on the arm that transformed into gentle caress down the forearm and the downright  _flirting_!

She refused to tell herself that she should have seen this coming because having a teenage boy and girl living in close quarters was bound to lead to more than friendly relations. No, this was not a possibility when her Maka was concerned! She wouldn't have pegged her stepson as this irresponsible either. Sure, he did have a rebellious streak but...the thought that her daughter and her stepson would...

She didn't tell her husband of any of her suspicions and she didn't plan to, at least not until she was fully sure about what Maka and Soul were doing behind closed doors together.

She didn't want to jeopardize her marriage, but most of all she didn't want to jump to conclusions so fast. If Soul and Maka were indeed together, she wouldn't know how to deal with it. She didn't want Maka to go through the same thing as she did, falling for someone so deeply in her juvenile naivety, getting pregnant at such a young age, having to let go of her dreams and plans for the future because being a mother had to be priority from now on. No, Maka had a bright future ahead of her and she refused to accept that her daughter's life would follow the same pattern. Maka did not need the influence of a man, much less one who was her stepbrother!

She finally cracked with the mounting evidence. It was on a day in December, Christmas was close; her husband was out, shopping for presents, while Wes back from university was still in his room, tired from the late night flight yesterday.

She, Maka and Soul were watching reruns of a sitcom from the seventies, and all was well until Soul excused himself to his room. She felt relieved that Maka stayed with her, talked to her like she always did, shared things she did together with her friends and about how she was looking forward to university.

It made her heart clench that her daughter would be leaving in a few months. There was a part of her that deeply regretted ever leaving the States and her daughter back then, and now Maka would be the one to leave, so soon after she had gotten used to spending time with her again. She had subtly and perhaps selfishly tried to persuade Maka to attend the university in their city, and even though Maka did apply here as well as to other universities and had even gotten accepted much to her delight, her daughter had decided to attend another university.

She didn't share her husband's relief that their kids would be going to the same university and wondered if they had planned to do this from the start. She immediately shot down the idea that Soul and Maka should rent an apartment together after their first year of dorming.

She flinched when Maka excused herself to her room after an hour. She watched her daughter leave and clenched her fists as she gulped down her panic. She waited a few minutes before she made her way upstairs and came to stand in front of Soul's room first, hearing their hushed voices, and her heart fell.

Her hand was clammy with sweat as she twisted the doorknob.

* * *

"Mama, I can explain!"

No matter how much she yelled and called for her mother's attention, her words fell on deaf ears. Maka should have been more careful, should have never let her guard down, never should have given her mother a reason to barge into Soul's room, catching them during a makeout session.

The blankness in her mama's eyes disturbed her. There had been no massive explosion of anger when she saw them together; as they jumped apart, for the briefest second, Maka had found herself on the receiving end of her mother's hateful glare, the ones she had used to direct at her cheating papa. It was only for a briefest second and then her eyes were schooled in careful blankness as she left the room, her steps robotic and heavy.

Soul and Maka ran after her, trying to talk, to make stop, to explain because this was not supposed to happen like this! She had really wanted to tell her mom the truth, never wanted her to find out like this and damn it, what did she want in her room?

"Mama, please listen." Maka approached her mother carefully as she wrenched Maka's closet open. "Mama, what are you doing?"

"Packing your things. I'll call your father so he can pick you up," she said, her voice eerily calm, and Maka was momentarily too bewildered to fully grasp her words.

"W-what?"

"You're going to send Maka away?" Soul said lowly, his anger and panic barely contained. He scoffed, red eyes flashing with disdain and for a moment Maka thought he might actually burn holes into her mom's back. "Classic."

With that her mother turned around, fixed them both with a contemptuous glare. "You should not be saying anything at all, Soul. Don't try to paint me as the villain here. Did you really think you could get away with your irresponsible behaviour all the time? Not this time, young man; I'm putting my foot down. Maka, you will stay with your father until I've decided what to do from there. Am I understood?"

Maka's hands were shaking. She couldn't believe this. She was just going to be sent away without...any real confrontation?! Her heart leapt into her throat as she tried not to burst into tears here and now. She took a shuddery breath and looked her mother in the eyes resolutely.

"If you want me to go to live with Papa, I will. To be honest, I'd rather live with him. At least papa always wanted me close to him and he never ran away to Europe whenever something bad happened. For all his flaws he was was always there for me," she spat, her rage getting the better of her, her frail control slipping from her grasp.

She blindly reached for Soul's hand, pointedly ignoring her mother's scorching glare, and squeezed reassuringly, trying to convey that even if she were to go live with her dad, nothing would change between them. She sought out his gaze, her heart swelled at his small smile and the warmth in his eyes. She knew she could count on him.

"Don't be stupid, Maka. You have no idea what you're talking about," her mother said, clenching her eyes shut as she rubbed her temple. "I did not run away to Europe whenever something bad happened, as you put it. I'm not the one who did something wrong here, you're the one who fucked your stepbrother─"

"Oh, to hell with it! I was fucking him before you had to go and marry his dad!"

Her mother recoiled visibly, face paling and twisting into disbelief. Before Maka could get her hopes up that she had somehow reached her, that they could somehow resolve this mess properly, her mother made a grab for a handful of her dresses and threw them on her bed.

"You're leaving. Now."

Maka felt her heart shatter.

* * *

This woman refused to listen to anything they were trying to say; it didn't help matters that Maka seemed to have given up, and he felt his heart clench at the tears in her eyes. He grasped her hand firmly and pulled her along with him, following his stepmother, who had haphazardly thrown some of Maka's clothes into a suitcase and was ignoring everything they were saying. So stubborn. He growled under his breath, terrified and yet at the same time determined to get his way because there was no way he'd let her break him and Maka apart again.

"Hey, wait. You can't send Maka just away because you don't know how to fucking deal with this shit!" He fastened his gait, tried to tap her on the shoulder to grab her attention but she just shrugged him off wordlessly.

The suitcase clattered loudly as she carelessly pulled it down the stairs behind her, making him wince at the noise. "Oi, don't ignore me. I refuse to let Maka leave. I won't let you."

She threw him a withering glance over her shoulder. "You have no say in this, and from now on you're going to stay away from my daughter!"

"Fuck y─"

"What's all the commotion about?"

Soul wasn't sure to feel relieved or absolutely terrified upon hearing his father's voice. He shouldn't get his hopes up and expect any support from him in this case but he could at least hope for some level headed conversation to fix this mess. He gritted his teeth as his stepmother walked up to his dad, explaining to him in the calmest voice and crudest language what had occurred.

And Soul knew even a level headed conversation might be too much to hope for. He had never seen his father so pissed, the weight of Maka's hand against his palm a silent comfort.

* * *

Wes liked to start his mornings with a cup of coffee, but today he was feeling especially well rested and thought maybe he'd indulge in a cappuccino or a latte macchiato. He had a feeling that this was going to be a good day, and he was planning on spending this Christmas in peace, delighted that his father had invited his mother over for Christmas dinner in order to make an effort to get along. Wes also had already purchased presents for everyone, so he could just kick back and enjoy his free time.

And everything came crashing down when he stepped into the living room, his father shouting at Soul, his stepmother looking ready to strangle anyone who stepped too close to her, Maka with tears in her eyes, and his little brother looking torn between wanting to bawl and ripping someone's head off.

"HOW COULD YOU DO THIS? What made you think that sleeping with your stepsister is a sensible thing to do, Soul?" his father yelled, his face red and for a moment Wes was sure steam might be coming out of his ears.

Oh.

They had found out, huh?

He'd just try to get away from this and silently slip into the kitchen. It was way too early for him to deal with this shit. Also, he needed his coffee; he couldn't start the day, especially not with drama like this, without his coffee.

"Wes!"

Oooh, shit.

"Yes, dad?" he smiled groggily, intent on playing dumb as he slowly inched back because nopenopenopenope, he was so not going to deal with this.

"Could you please come here," his dad said, running a hand through his hair in agitation.

"Uh, sure. After I made some coffee─"

"Wesley, could you please come here. There is something we need to discuss."

Okay, if his dad used his full name shit was about to go down. Wes didn't even try to keep his voice quiet as he made his way into the living room to miserably flop down onto the couch. "Urgh, fuck."

* * *

Maka wasn't really listening when her stepfather also dragged poor Wes into this. He hadn't even done anything. She sighed and looked at her mom pitifully, nearly shrinking away at the disdain in her eyes.

"Did you know about the things Soul and Maka were doing, Wesley?" her stepfather asked, a little calmer than before, though depending on Wes' answer, that might not be the case for long.

A tense silence stretched on, Maka felt like she was about to faint and could only clutch Soul's hand tighter. After what seemed like hours, Wes sighed. "Yes, I did." He looked at them sharply, maroon eyes dark and impenetrable.

Mr. Evans was seething. "Then...why didn't you tell us anything?" he asked between gritted teeth, his fists clenched tightly, his knuckles almost white.

Wes seemed to ponder about this a little, cocked his head to the side. "Uh, because it is none of my business?"

"How can it not be any of your business when your brother and sister have sex?!"

Maka winced at his loud voice, was amazed by how calm Wes managed to stay.

"Because they can do whatever they want. They are not related, no matter how much you try to stress the opposite, they are nearly adults and they had been together longer than you two," he said and motioned towards her mama and stepfather with lazy hand.

"They...what?"

"It's true," Maka chimed in, gulping down her dread as she gathered all her courage. "Soul and I were together before you decided to get married."

He looked at her incredulously and then turned to his wife. "You didn't tell me that."

"It doesn't matter, does it? They have kept this a secret and─"

"But we wanted to tell you! We just...we weren't sure when," Maka mumbled, looking down at her shoes.

"Even if we had told you, what would you have done? Not married? Would you have been okay with us together?" Soul cut in, voice level.

Mr. Evans looked uneasily from his wife to Soul and to Maka before he turned to his wife again. "We...would have figured something out. If you had told us before this could have been avoided. We would have talked it out and─"

"Made us break up so it wouldn't be awkward for you to get hitched?" Soul asked snidely.

"No! I would have not forced you apart, Soul. Who do you take me for?" Soul looked away, grumbling something under his breath.

Her mother remained unfazed and Maka knew better than to believe things were looking up now with her stepfather's wavering irritation.

"Maka," she began and Maka felt like a small, stupid child again, a child that needed guidance, a child too inexperienced to make her own decisions. "What if you break up? Would the awkwardness be worth this?"

"If I'm not mistaken you're the ones who have gotten a divorce despite your age and wisdom," Wes said nonchalantly, making her chest flutter with gratitude. Soul hid his snicker with a well-placed fake cough and her mother glowered at the older Evans brother as if she was ready to kill him before she turned her attention back to Maka.

"I'm sure you don't think you'll ever break up and that you'll live happily ever after because you love each other so much, but you are so young, too young to know about love and the world...I know I was too young back then," she finished quietly, not meeting Maka's gaze. "I was 18 when I married and believed your father to be the one. I don't want the same to happen to you, Maka."

"I am  _nothing_ like Spirit," Soul said, offended and angry.

"And I am nothing like you, Mama," Maka whispered and then continued louder and more determined. "Because I actually deal with my mistakes instead of running away like you."

She almost regretted her words. Almost. The stricken look on her mother's face made her heart clench painfully in her chest, she was close to forgetting about everything, wanted to hug her mama and apologize because even if she had made mistakes, Maka still loved her mother and was loathe to see her in pain like this. The air was filled with uneasiness, everyone at a loss for words. Wes was the first to move, shuffling awkwardly from the couch and muttering something about coffee under his breath.

It was then when the bell rang, Wes' head peeking into the living room from behind the wall. "Mr. Albarn is here."

Maka sucked in a breath, her lungs burning as she helplessly looked from her mother to Soul. She swallowed hard. "Okay, I'll be leaving then," she said demurely, patted Soul's cheek, hugged him and discreetly kissed him on the cheek before she withdrew with a smile. He looked unsure for a moment, but then nodded releasing her hand. She glanced briefly at her mother as she took her suitcase, and bid her stepfather goodbye which he returned uneasily.

She was so stupid, hoping that her mama might stop her, but Maka knew she'd need time. Maybe staying away a little would do her some good too. She smiled bitterly and came to a stop at the kitchen door, seeing Wes sitting at the small dining table, strangely no cup of coffee anywhere near him as he stared forlornly ahead.

She cleared her throat, catching his attention. "Um, thanks─" she blushed, embarrassed but continued nonetheless, "─for helping us out I mean. And I'm sorry that you got dragged into this mess."

He blinked, tilting his head to the side before he smiled a little. "S'alright. Siblings stick together."

Suddenly her throat felt too tight to breathe properly. She nodded weakly, muttered a quiet goodbye, making a quick dash outside, running into her father's comically outstretched arms. Spirit grunted in surprise, never expecting his daughter to return his overly affectionate gestures. He ignored her tear-stained eyes, guiding her to his car because he knew whatever had occurred, he needed to ask his darling daughter about this later at home.

* * *

She didn't know why she ever agreed to this. She was frowning when she stepped into the small cafe, shrugging off the uneasiness in her heart when she caught sight of her ex. Spirit had called her on the same day Maka had left and tried to talk some sense into her. She had hung up on him because she was the sensible one and he was the idiot who needed advice from others. At least that was how it had always been and was supposed to be.

Yet here she was, having agreed to meet up with him to talk about Maka. She didn't know what there was to talk about and she didn't need to listen to his bullshit.

"Spirit," she greeted him curtly, nodding to him as she took her seat across him. She wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible and whenever he asked her something, gave him one-worded replies.

He was all bright smiles and exaggerated gesticulations when he talked. It made something clench inside her painfully, but she refused to analyze this feeling further. He had always been a silly, overdramatic oaf.

She ordered a simple coffee and he offered her to pay, which she vehemently refused to accept. They sat in silence before he was the one to break it again.

"About Maka," he began uneasily, sighing loudly as his blue eyes were focused on the cup in front of him. "She told me everything."

"Yes, you mentioned this on the phone already. Now please tell me why you called me here and what you think you can change about my decision with this chat."

"You have always been a very stubborn woman, but this isn't just about you this time. Maka is miserable."

Anger welled up within her heart. "She should have thought of this before she decided to have sex with her stepbrother," she gritted out, fists clenching.

Spirit winced and groaned, and she knew she had won this round because her ex could never fathom the thought that his precious little daughter had relations with other boys, her stepbrother no less.

"Listen," he said, "It wasn't easy to accept─ it really wasn't because the first thing I wanted to do when Maka told me she was dating Soul was to come over and make sure he doesn't bother her again." He sighed again before he continued, "But...but if being with that boy makes her happy, then I'll not stand in their way to be together."

She snorted. "Please, what has she told you? Promised you that she is going to spend more time with you? You are so easy to manipulate, Spirit."

"Actually she has no idea that I was planning to meet up with you, and I wanted it that way."

"You can't be seriously condoning this...relationship, Spirit. Don't be ridiculous. She'll end up unhappy and alone. She is too young to─"

"Maka is a smart girl. And what makes her happy doesn't have to necessarily make me happy. It is her choice with whom she wants to be and as her father I'll support her whenever I can."

She gulped, her hands shaking. She hated how right he sounded, hated how she was made out to be the villain here. "But...she thinks everything's okay now, but she is so inexperienced and I want the best for her and she can't just...I mean, look what happened to us. We were too young, I got pregnant and we rushed into things, thinking that getting married was the right thing to do."

There was something in his eyes, she wasn't sure what; she had used to be so good at reading him, but Spirit wasn't the man he used to be. He had changed. The Spirit she knew would have never approved of his daughter dating someone like Soul.

"First off, Maka is a responsible young girl, and I'm sure she will be careful. I raised her accordingly, and even if the relationship doesn't last, that's a part of life. Secondly, I didn't marry you because you got pregnant. I married you because I loved you."

Her breath hitched and she closed her eyes for a moment, trying not to think of the moments she had spent with this stupid man, the man who hurt her so much, the man who betrayed her, broke her trust. She tried not to think of the happy times with him, of the time when he held their little Maka in his arms after fourteen painful hours of labour, of his smile, of his goofy charms, of the moments and times when she had been genuinely in love with him and forgave him repeatedly for cheating on her because she had truly believed he was the man who was going to be at her side for the rest of her life. His betrayal had hurt so much, and even though she had hoped they could put their differences to the side again and again, her naivety had come to its end and filing the divorce papers, even though it hadn't been easy, was the best decision she had made in her life. Now she could move on and free herself from an unhealthy relationship.

"Funny how flippantly you can say that when you weren't particularly good at acting according to your feelings for me," she mumbled, refusing to meet his eyes.

What was she doing? They had talked about Maka, she should leave and stop this nonsense. She wanted to be home, to be with the man who meant everything to her, who treated her with the respect she deserved, who never once made her doubt his loyalty and who shared her tastes in so many things.

"I know I wasn't a good husband and...I'm sorry for hurting you."

He had apologized so many times for his behaviour, yet had never changed, never stopped flirting and sleeping with other women. She hated how sincere he sounded, remembering the times when his apologies would consist of tears and snot and a lot of bawling and clinging and...

"I should go." She didn't make an attempt to leave, despite her words. She looked up, his eyes as blue as ever and full of regret. "Spirit, I..."

He smiled. "I understand. You're a very busy person and I'm sorry for calling you here, but I thought it was important to talk about Maka and Soul." He put on his jacket, waving the waiter over. "Your husband must be waiting for you."

"Oh, he isn't. He comes home late today."

"I see. He seems to be a good one, an honest and upright person."

She allowed herself a little smile. "Yes, he is."

"I'm glad you found someone who makes you happy." And just from looking at him she knew he meant it, and for the first time she came here, she smiled brightly, feeling awkward yet relieved at the same time.

"Thank you," she said, missing how he ended up paying for her coffee as well. "I'm glad I came here."

* * *

Soul was miserable. She wanted to scoff at that, wanted to bask in irritation and tell him to get his act together and stay away from her daughter. She wished she could say for sure his misery was fake, but her stepson was never one to wear his emotions on his sleeve and this time it wasn't any different. She sometimes caught him staring sadly ahead though, his eyes painfully expressive, and it made her heart ache.

Soul had taken to locking himself up in his room as much as possible, and Wes was the only one who managed to get his little brother out of his room once in a while.

They were in the kitchen, talking heatedly about something, yet she passed them quickly, not wanting to risk a confrontation with her stepson.

"I don't want any fucking coffee, Wes."

"That's a cappuccino, not coffee, you peasant!"

She and her husband had talked this over, discussed their options─ from keeping both of them away from each other, to letting them just be. And after a while even she had to agree that she could not willingly tear them apart. Their feelings for each other were apparently genuine and not some impulsive stupidity born from teenage hormones. She was shocked to find out how long they had been together, how long they had kept this a secret, and it made her question herself and if she had failed that much as a mother that her daughter refused to confide in her.

It just made her realize later how much things had changed and how much Maka wasn't the demure, shy and innocent little girl she once knew. Maka had changed, she had grown up, found someone who loved and respected her, and here she was being the vile matriarch wreaking havoc. She wished Maka had told her about her relationship with Soul. Perhaps things would have turned out differently, perhaps they would have figured something out, made appropriate arrangements.

She sighed.

She wanted her daughter to be happy, and if that meant Maka would be happy with Soul, then she was going to tolerate it. They'd work something out even if things were bound to be a little awkward first. She didn't care. This was about her daughter, and her happiness was of utmost importance. She had made a lot of mistakes herself and this time she was going to do the right thing and put Maka first.

Standing up, she reached for her phone. She had some apologizing to do.

* * *

Maka had stayed at her father's place for three days, and those were three days too many for Soul's liking. When Maka rang the bell and the door was opened for her, the first thing she did was not to fall into his arms but hug her mother tightly.

"I'm so sorry for keeping this a secret from you, Mama," Maka said, holding back a sob as her mom rubbed her back soothingly.

"It's okay, honey. You didn't know what to do, but everything's okay now. But next time, if it is something this important, tell me, okay?" They pulled back at the same time, sharing a teary smile before Maka turned to Soul.

"Hey," she said, breathless, her eyes a little puffy, her hair down and so beautiful he couldn't take it as she smiled. She uncertainly looked at her mother, who merely shrugged and patted Maka on the head. This was apparently all Maka needed, and with that she threw herself at him, nearly knocking him over in the process. She giggled giddily, her arms tight around his neck as he eventually managed to return her embrace. He looked at his stepmother over Maka's shoulder, her mouth curved into a small smile─ a resigned yet happy smile. Soul closed his eyes and basked in Maka's closeness, relieved that they didn't have to hide anything anymore, elated that their parents were okay with it, that he could just hold Maka like this without any worries. Maybe though, he'd spare his dad and stepmother the awkwardness and not kiss her in front of them, he wasn't sure yet. He grinned. He had plenty of time to decide and even if he eventually decided to keep the PDA in front of the parents to a minimum, he had plenty of time to make good for all the not-kisses once they were both in university some miles away from a somewhat awkward household.

* * *

Wes was happy; Soul and Maka would not drive him to the border of alcoholism or force him to watch  _My Little Pony_ anymore.

He liked happily ever afters a lot. Life was good and he had restocked his caffeinated beverages too, so he couldn't be anymore content right now. Today, he had decided to go with a caffe macchiato and some chocolate cookies to enjoy his afternoon in peace, watching TV. He was still a little undecided on what to watch though.

Now that he thought about it, the last episode of  _My Little Pony_ might or might not have ended on a cliffhanger. Okay, maybe he'd watch the next episode too and be done with it.


End file.
